Shaper



Aug. 7, 192s.

F. W. PARKER SHAPER Filed April '7, 1927 Patented Aug. 7, 1928.

vUNITED STATES -FRANK WESLEY PARKER, OF BOISE, IDAHO.

SHAPER.

Application led April 7, 1927. Serial No. 181,791..

This invention relates to reciprocating drive mechanisms, and more particularly to that type of mechanism as applied to metal working machinery.

More particularly the invention relates to a reciprocating drive mechanism of positive type for driving the cutting heads, rams, travelling beds, and so on, of metal working machinery.

It is a general object of the present iny vention to provide a novel and improvedl form of reciprocating drive mechanism.

A further object of the inventiony is to provide a reciprocating drive mechanism, of generous proportions,=with capacity for a. relatively long strokey of the reciprocating member, without necessitating an increase in the customary height of the machine.

One of the features of the invention consists in arranging a reciprocating drive mechanism in such a manner as to produce an extremely compact machine in which the drive is positive and intended to provide, throughout they full stroke, adequate power for cutting purposes.

Another feature of the invention consists in the arrangement, in a machine tool, of a rack secured to the base of the machine, of a second rack secured to the reciprocating portion of the machine and of a toothed member arranged between the two racks and engaging each and adapted to be itself reciprocated.

A further feature of the invention consists in the provision of la reciprocable slide incorporated into a mechanism of the type described, and adapted to be reciprocated on the column of the machine and to carry a rocker wheel which coacts with the stationary and movable racks.

One of the other features of this invention consists in providing a means for eX- tending the stroke of the reciprocating member to any desired length, within the limit of the machine, without either appreciably diminishing the power delivered to the cutting tool, or greatly retarding the cutting speed, at the beginning and ending of each forward stroke, nor unduly speeding up the return action at certain other positions within the range of the reciprocating movement. t

Other and'further features of the invention will be more apparent to those skilled in the art, upon consideration of the accompanying drawing and following speciication, wherein is disclosed a single exemplary embodiment of the invention, it being understood, however, that such changes may be made therein as fall within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a. machine constructed according to the present invention with a portion thereof broken away to more clearly illustrate the drive mechanism, the Work-table not being shown;

Fig. 2 is a rear end elevation partly in vertical section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a partial horizontal section on line 3--3 of Fig. 1.

The present invention for the sake of convenience has been illustrated as applied to metal shapers, although it will be obvious that its application is in no sense limited to that particular type of machine.

Heretoforethe majority of metal shapers as distinguished from so-called planers, have Vcomprised a stationary frame work and a reciprocable ram.. The conventional drive of this ram has comprised a rocker arm working on a fulcrum secured near the base of the machine. The rocker arm was provided with a longitudinal slot in which a crank pin moved back and forth in a plane radial to the fulcrum of the rocker. The upper end of the rocker had a sliding connection with the ram. vThe travel of the ram could be varied by moving ,the crank pin further from or closer to its center of rotation. Increasing the distance of the crank pin from its center increased the inclination of the rocker arm from the perpendicular in a very undesirable manner, such that, with long strokes, a great loss of power resulted vat the ybeginning and end of the cutting stroke, so that the amount of metal removed by thek cut had to be reduced. In order to obtain a desired'long stroke with adequate power, an extremely long rocker arm became necessary which resulted lin raising the ram and the tool too high from the floor to permit of efficient and a convenient operation.

Where a stroke longer than that permitted by the rocker arm drive was desired some form of planer mechanism was resorted to and reversal obtained by friction clutches or shifting belts, the undesirability of which is well known.

The present invention entirely overcomes rocker wheel.

the limitations of the rocker arm drive by substituting therefor what may be termed a rocker wheel having a moving or walking ulcrum and driving this rocker wheel by a suitable crank motion, adjustable for various lengths oi' stroke.

Referring to the drawing, there is dis-A closed a shaper having the base portion 1() and the column or support 11 composed of the two side walls 12 and 13 andk suitable end members. rl`he ram 111 of conventional term has its slides 15 guided in ways 16 in the upper portion of the trame and retained in position by the members 17.

A suitable toothed rack 18 is secured by bolts 19 to the side wall 12 substantially at its junction .with the base of the machine.

'A similar rack 2O is attached to the under surface of the ram vertically above the rack 18. Between the two racks and meshed with each is the rocker wheel 21. It will be noted that il a motion is given to this rocker wheel, it will roll or walkalong the stationary rack 18, and will impart to the rack 2() and consequently to the ram, a motion whichk is twice that imparted to the center ot' the The rocker wheel is thus in el'ect a lever of the third order, having its pivot or fulcrumat the rack 18, the power applied at the center 22 and effort imparted to the ram at-the rack However, the rocker differs from a simple lever in that the fulcrum continues to move with theapplication oi power, so that the power is always applied when the lever is at right angles to both racks.

ln order that the rocker may not rideon` the bottom rack and cause binding of the teeth and in order to prevent any side canting action,- it is guided by the cross-head 23, which is arranged to reciprocate in the wall 12. F or this purpose the wall is provided with a slot 24 having: the cham'fered edges 25 and the flanking grooves The crosshcad is protiled in cross section as shown in Fig. 2 to have the edges 27 adapted to cooperate with the edges 25 oi" the slot, and to have the inclined edges 28 adapted to cooperate with suitable surfaces on the retaining rails 29 which are bolted in the flanking grooves 25 to hold the cross-head against lateral movement, but to allow reciprocation thereof. rllhe rocker wheel 21 is journalled on a bushing which is supported by the pin 30- passing through the cross-head and is retained in position bv a nut 31 or other suitable fastening means.

ln order to; drive the cross-head, a crank pin 33 is attached to a disc 34- connected to the spur gear 35. The disc and gear kare mounted on a spindle 36 which is journalled in an auxiliary head 37, supportedr from the base 38 which may be independent of the base 10, and secured thereto as at 39. Suitable power may be imparted to the spur gear lv by' means of the pinion 40T mounted on a shaft 11, journalled to the column which supports the bearing 37 anddriven through a selectivev speed gear unit or other suitable power, such as a. variable speed electric motor.

r1`he crank pin is adjustable toward and from the sha'lt 3G in any suitable manner, in order that the circle through which it rotates may be adjusted to the desired diameter-'to regulate the length ot stroke tor the rain-14. A connecting rod 4-2 couples thel crank pin 33 to a stud i3 on the cross-head, sovt'hat'the rotary motion of the crank pin is changed to reciprocating motion atthe cross-head.,

It will be noted that vthe rocker wheel 21 and the actuating mechanism for crosshead 23 are affixed tol the opposite sides ot such cross head and in consequence may be. ar,-4 ranged. in an overlapped position as shown in Fig. 1, where the rocker. wheel 21-and the ram are yshown in mid-stroke.v In this manner, although employing very long. slide bearings and lozigthrow crank, avery compact drive is elifected and none of the drive mechanism extends beyond the. Iends of the irame, the lengtlr of whichtis determined? by the throw oi the ram for any rated size olf machine.

In order to allow the cut taken by tool`A lli. to be positioned as desired, in regard kto the relation to the: work, in accordance with the prevailing custom 1in such machines,` the rack 2O is made adj ustable` longitudinally -on the ram. This is. eiiect-edby securin'gthe rack 2O to theV ram by means ofa pairgrof bolts i5 which` pass through elongated slots i6 in the ram and receive the nuts 47', provided with the handle :Ll8 onl their upper end-s. By looseningv the nuts, the position of the rack in its seat von the ram: can be ,all tered to suit the work requirements and then securely clamped. by the means aforesaid.`

The mechanism above describedprovides a reciprocating motion forthe lram which is adjustable to various lengths ofV traverse, within well ,definedA zones. It maybe apf plied not only to Shapers but to planers and similar machines requiring apart to bereciprocatedl for cutting, grinding,. or similar purposes.

An important feature of theu construction described is that regardless of theposition oi' the rockerV wheel in thewcourse oithe stroke oit the ram', the point otpressu-re where' the power is delivered to the ram is always perpendicular to the fulcrum of the rocker wheel, and inY alignment with the travel of the ram, and power is thus delivered' to the cutting tool with maximum eiiciency throughout the entire stroke. I The power is thus appliedv in eiect directly behind the cutting tool'. There-is no tendency for crainpf"` ing of a sliding cra-nk pin, asin the case of the rocker arm drive, previously described'.

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The speed of the return stroke being equivalent to that of the forward stroke, the cutting speed is limited only to the endurance of the tool when working on the longer strokes.

The construction permitsv the use` of a crosshead slide of generous proportions with unusually large and long bearing surfaces, insuring against cramping under the heaviest services and provides excellent means for taking up of wear. The cross-head throw can be made extremely long without cramping owing to the great center distances of the connecting rod, without it being necessary, however, to extend the frame of the machine for that purpose. A simple means is provided for changing the ram stroke. It will be obvious that any suitable means for moving the crank pin 33 may be resorted to. The side thrust of the crank pin is taken directly behind the pin by having the rear face of the rim of the gear 35 bearing against the face plate 50 which may be integral with the head 37.

The particular arrangement of the drive mechanism materially reduces the over-all length of the machine. The positioning of the shaft 36 so that if its axis were extended it would intersect the gear wheel throughout a portion of its movement, results in positioning the entire drive mechanism within the length of the ram supporting column. Thus the length of the machine is determined by the length of the ram and its ways rather than by the drive mechanism. j

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1; In a machine of the type described, in combination, a. frame comprising a base, a vertical standard and Ways, a reciprocable part guided in said ways, a slot in said standard parallel to said ways, a cross-head guided in said slot for reciprocation parallel to said part, a rack on the lower side of said part, a rack near the bottom of said frame, a rocker wheel coacting with said racks, said wheel being pivoted to said cross-head on one side of said standard, a revolvable shaft on the opposite side of said standard, a pin eccentrically driven by said shaft and facing said standard and a connecting rod joining said pin and cross-head for the purpose described.

2. In a. machine of the type described, in combination, a base, an elongated vertical standard secured to said base, ways at the top of said standard, a part reciprocable in said ways, one wall of said standard having a slot therein parallel to said ways, a cross-head guided in said slot for reciprocation parallel to said part, a rocker wheel pivoted on a transverse bearing carried by said cross-head, and operatively connected to said part and said frame to cause reciprocation of said part in unison with said wheel,

a column adjacent to said wall of said standard Aand on the opposite. side thereof from said rocker wheel, a shaft journalled` in said column and adapted to be revolved, a crank pin connected to said shaft and a connecting rod between said crank pin and said crosshead whereby revolving of said shaft is caused to reciprocate-,said part.l l

3. In a machine of thel type described, in combination, a. base, an elongated vertical standard secured to said base, ways at the top of said standard, a part reciprocable in said ways, said standard having a slot therein parallel to said Ways, a cross-head guided in said slot for reciprocation parallel to said part, a rocker Wheel carried by said crossead for oscillation about a transverse axis, means secured to said part and operatively engaging with said rocker wheel, means secured to said base and operatively engaging with said rocker wheel, said means and wheel serving to drive said part in unison with said cross-head, a column adjacent said standard and on the opposite side thereof from said rocker wheel, a shaft journalled in said column and adapted to be revolved, a crank pin connected to said shaft and al connecting rod between said crank pin and said cross-head whereby revolving of said shaft is caused to reciprocate said part, said shaft and rocker wheel being in overlapped relation during at least a portion of each stroke of said crosshead.

4. In a machine of the type described, in combination, a frame, ways at the top of said frame, a ram reciprocable in said ways, said frame having an elongated slot therein parallel to said ways, a. cross-head reciprocable in said slot, means connecting said crosshead and said ram to drive said ram in unison with said cross-head but with a longer stroke, an auxiliary head adjacent said frame, a shaft journalled in said head, a crank pin rotatable with said shaft and a connecting rod coupling said crank pin and said cross-head.

5. In a machine of the type described, in combination, a frame having a pair of spaced vertical walls, ways at the top of said frame, a ram reciprocable in said ways, said frame having an elongated slot therein parallel to said ways, a cross-head reciproca-ble in said slot, a rocker wheel pivoted to said cross-head between said walls, means secured to the under side of said ram and engaging with said wheel, means secured to said frame beneath said wheel and engaging therewith, said means and wheel driving said ram, a standard adjacent said slotted wall, a shaft journalled therein, a crank-pin, a pin attached to said cross-head and a connecting rod having its ends journalled on said pins, said rod being of such length that said wheel and crank pin orbit partially overlap during a portion of each stroke.

6. In a*nxlelline'of ythe type de'se'rbed, in the'ref, a Shaft i'ot-ativelymounted on sd l `conleinat-ien, a'frame, a rlecpioeable part, a head 'and'lhavng a,- era'nk pin; thel orbtf Cross-head m0unted`on said-frame to eeip'r'o- 'said pin if extended inte-ISeetingaid Wheel cate Parallel to said part, Ineens connecting Within its periphery X'vhen'the Wheel is at OI' 5 Said Cross-head and part tov reeipio'eate the near one. end of its travel, and a. pitlr'nen part with a Stroke longer than Vthat of the connecting said cink pin end erS-hed.- l5 'crosshead 'and including al 'rocker Wheel ear- In testimony whereof 'I hereunto aiix in'y red by said` cross-head', an lauxiliary head signature. v f secured to the base of said vframe laterally FRANK WESLEY PARKER. 

